Instant Pot Wild Rice Pilaf with Mushrooms and Pine Nuts

Instant Pot wild rice pilaf with mushrooms and pine nuts- this is the perfect low-effort side dish for your holiday table! Cook it ahead in the Instant Pot and re-warm when you’re ready to serve. Gluten-free and vegan!

Easter is just around the corner, and I have the perfect easy side dish for you!

To save your stove-top, you can prep this Instant Pot wild rice pilaf with mushrooms & pine nuts in the Instant Pot! Bonus? It can be prepped a day or two ahead and re-heated. How’s that for convenient?

This super simple wild rice pilaf recipe is not the star of your table, but it’s a flavorful side dish that is *just* fancy enough for a holiday feast. And did I mention? So. Flipping. Easy.

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If you are anything like me, you spend most of your time on the main star of the holiday feast…ie the turkey or the ham, or the goose.

Side dishes pretty much need to be effortless, and that’s just what this Instant Pot wild rice pilaf is! You barely have to do any work, and you can even make it ahead!

What on Earth is wild rice pilaf?

Wild rice pilaf is basically just wild rice cooked with a bunch of yummy stuff: onions, garlic, stock, thyme leaves and mushrooms, in this case.

Lemme break it down for you:

1. First we sautee some onions and garlic in olive oil.
2. Then we add the wild rice and toast it for a few minutes.
3. Then we deglaze the pan with a little white wine.
4. Cook it up with stock, thyme leaves and mushrooms.
5. Voila! Delicious, super-flavorful rice that is the perfect side dish for your holiday feast.

How to make wild rice pilaf ahead of time:

Not only is this Instant Pot wild rice pilaf super easy to make, but you can even make it ahead and re-heat. I tried a few different re-heating methods.

• Lorena from Green Healthy Cooking suggests re-heating in the Instant Pot using a pot in pot method, steaming it for 5 minutes. This is super efficient, and great for a half batch of this recipe but I didn’t have the right size bowl to do a full batch of this pilaf.
• I suggest piling everything into a casserole dish, covering, and re-heating in the oven on 350°F if you are making a full batch of this Instant Pot wild rice pilaf. Add the pine nuts and parsley fresh!

Tips for perfect Instant Pot wild rice pilaf:

• I used my trusty 6 quart Instant Pot; this recipe has not been tested in an 8 quart Instant Pot
• Due to the long cook time, veggies turn to mush in this recipe (except mushrooms for some reason!) so if you want to add carrots or celery, you’ll have to cook them separately and add them in
• Looking for more holiday side dishes? Try this Parmesan Mashed Cauliflower, or this Raspberry Balsamic Cranberry Sauce, or check out this round up with 27 Holiday Slow Cooker Recipes!
• Don’t forget to check out these 7 Instant Pot Chicken Breast Recipes

Watch the video below to see exactly how I prepped my Instant Pot Wild Rice Pilaf. It’s so easy! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel, or on Facebook.

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5 from 1 vote

Instant Pot Wild Rice Pilaf

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Calories: 263kcal

Author: Denise

Servings: 8

Instant Pot wild rice pilaf with mushrooms and pine nuts- this is the perfect low-effort side dish for your holiday table! Cook it ahead in the Instant Pot and re-warm when you're ready to serve.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time50 mins

Total Time1 hr

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 onions chopped
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 12 oz mushrooms sliced
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves)
• 2 cups wild rice brown basmati blend
• 2 cups stock

After cooking

• 1/2 cup parsley chopped
• 1/2 cup pine nuts (or almond slices)

Instructions

• Select 'sautee' function on a 6 quart Instant Pot. Heat olive oil, then add the onions and cook for 5-7 minutes, until soft and translucent.  Stir in the garlic and cook for one minute.
• Add 1/4 cup of white wine (or stock) and deglaze the Instant Pot for 1-2 minutes. 
• Cancel the 'sautee' function and add remaining ingredients. Stir everything up. 
• Cook on high pressure for 28 minutes, then allow to naturally release for 15 minutes. If there is any pressure remaining, release it. 
• Stir in the parsley and pine nuts and enjoy.

To re-heat

• Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
• Add pilaf to a casserole dish with a lid. Bake (covered) for 30 minutes, or until heated through. 
• Stir in the pine nuts and parsley just before serving.

Notes

*This recipe has only been tested in a 6 quart Instant Pot *This recipe was tested with two different brands of wild rice blend: a brown rice blend and a brown basmati blend. Make sure not to use parboiled (pre-cooked) rice.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/8 of batch | Calories: 263kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 389mg | Potassium: 427mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 485IU | Vitamin C: 9.3mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 1.9mg

Cook time was adapted from Green Healthy Cooking!